Ah...my mistake.
One of Wagner’s BIG concerns was the proper mounting and production of his work. He did not consider them mere “Opera”, but Dramatic Musical Presentations which required special staging. He helped design a Unique Theater in Berlin (Bayreuth) specifically to mount productions of his work. The theater had to have the very best in stagecraft to accommodate his Musical Dramas.
Maybe he was eccentric and controlling, but the power of his music gives him a pass, IMNSHO.
Puccini and Verdi, on the other hand, tackled more contemporary themes in their music, so an update on La Boheme or la Traviata doesn’t seem so out-of-line. Especially since the critics of the day were scandalized precisely BECAUSE those Operas (And Carmen, too!) set their sexy stories in the NOW, instead of Ancient, Mythical Times.
For some reason, it was OK for Ancient Greeks or Dark Ages Folks to do the nasty and kill each other, but NOT so the residents of Contemporary Paris.
LOL
Wagner’s theater was not in Berlin. It was in Beyreuth, which is in the German state of Bavaria. That state was once an independent kingdom, but Otto von Bismarck put an end to that.